So my friend wants an electric guitar and he has only $250 to spend. I have an extra amp that I can lend him so he can use all 250 on a guitar. I'm not sure what guitar I should recommend so can you guys help me? I'll check craigslist but I think he might want a new guitar. Any brand is fine I guess, as much as I love Fender the amount of money he has available is really quite limiting.

Thanks for the help.

MIM Strat or Tele. Shouldn't be too much, and the used market is huge.

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1984 Squier Contemporary Stratocaster
1986 Peavey Envoy 110
1967 Kingston Acoustic

the for Chinese "Bang for your Buck" guitars the Xaviere guitars are actually very nice.
a bit better than Squier in my opinion, but squire isn't bad.
http://www.guitarfetish.com/Xaviere-Ele ... c_116.html

and the SX guitars from rondo music aren't bad either. about the same quality as the mid range Squier guitars but cheaper.

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Hard to beat a used MIM for the price. Depending where you're located it shouldn't be too hard to find a decent used Mexican strat or tele for that price. I see three strats on Phoenix CL for $250 or less. There's also a "diamond series" schecter for $250.

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In my opinion Leo Fender had essentially perfected the guitar amplifier by 1964.

id suggest even a squier standard strat. I had one, and i loved it! it sounded and played fantastic!

[urlhttp://www.guitarcenter.com/Squier-Standard-Stratocaster-Electric-Guitar-101115525-i1146338.gc][/url]

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Squier For Life!

Peavey Mark IV Bass head
Peavey 2x10
Peavey 1x15

Brands I recommend:

Fender--should be able to pick up an old one used
Squier--Standard, Vintage Modified, or Classic Vibe (may have to be used for some of these)
Lace--Huntington


Just keep saving and looking. Either he will save enough for one he wants, or find a killer deal.

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RK

2007 Fender Highway 1
2012 American Deluxe
2015 MIM Dave Murray HHH
2010 Fender Blacktop
1987 Fender Avalon Acoustic
2012 Marshall DSL 15 watt head

Yeah, my first was a squier but to be honest I wasn't a big fan. Maybe it was just the model I got (Affinity strat) but at the neck near the headstock was wayyyy to thin, the strings were extremely close together making it difficult to play chords without one of the strings being muted. I now have a MIM that I modded and I love that thing to death.

I'll check craigslist for any available MIM's but I'm in Fargo so I don't know...

EDIT: I just checked Craigslist and there are no used MIM's on it. I'll see how he feels about maybe buying online

what kind of music is he into? That's a good place to start ...

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the affinity's are a lot worse than the deluxe or classic vibe. i know, ive owned a few in my day. and the quality between the two is night and day. i would compare a high end squier like the deluxe or the classic vibes to a mim fender any day. but anything below a even a deluxe squier is pretty much scraping the bottom of the barrel. you will really notice the difference when you start playing the higher end models.

Which brings me to the classic vibe j bass i used to own. one of the nicest basses ive ever owned i honestly wish i never sold it! for the every day average player. its perfect. you really need nothing else. I now have a fender american standard j bass.honestly the squiers come no where close to touching the made in the USA however, they are right up there with MIM fender standards.

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Squier For Life!

Peavey Mark IV Bass head
Peavey 2x10
Peavey 1x15

maybe a second hand modern player series guitar would fit the bill ?? i think they are generally a little bit cheaper than a MIM, but the 3 ive had contact with - telecaster, thinline telecaster and the telecaster bass - have all impressed me. id take one over a squier any day.

Thanks for all the information guys. Some of you asked what kind of music he likes and well, he likes a bunch of stuff but mostly rock. He likes Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Police, Beatles that sort of stuff. I'm thinking a strat is probably the way to go.

OK, to match the guitars to the bands he likes:

1. Beatles = mostly Epiphone/Gretsch
2. The Police = mostly Fender
3. Lynyrd Skynyrd = mostly Gibson

Gibson - too pricey, forget it

Gretsch - I honestly don't know enough about them to give an opinion, other than they seem to be kind of a 'one trick pony', I think a beginner should have something versatile

Epiphone - the Beatles played mostly Casinos which are too pricey based on the price range you're looking at. There is the Les Paul Special, or Les Paul 100 by Epiphone which kind of have a Lynyrd Skynyrd look and they are in the $130-$250 range, but I personally wouldn't recommend those

That leaves Mr. Andy Summers:





Yep, I have to agree with the majority above, MIM Strat or Tele, check craigslist

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I'd also recommend a used MIM Strat (or Tele) -- you can often find them used for around $250.

He might also want to consider an Epiphone G-310, a bolt on neck style SG. These can be had new for $249 on musiciansfriend. Or an Epiphone G-400 used should be available for $200. The Epi SG's are real solid guitars!

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CREDO ELVEM IPSUM ETAIM VIVERE

OK the 'Laughing' smiley is a clue, but I should mention 2 problems with Epi SG's:

1. "Neck dive", they are poorly weighted so the neck tends to slide downward while you are trying to play standing up with a strap. There are several 'workarounds' for this problem.

2. Ummm this speaks for itself:

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